The Happy Mourner
by iloveromance
Summary: At the funeral for a loathed aunt, Niles is disgusted by the display of emotion around him. but one particular mourner touches his heart in a way that no one else ever could. A rewrite of the episode "Martin Does it His Way", and a Christmas gift for SamandDianefan10.


**A/N: A Christmas gift for Melinda for your friendship and support. Thanks for always being there for me! *hugs***

The mourners were silent as the reverend approached the podium, the Crane family showing hardly any emotion at all. Niles was among the most disgusted by the whole thing. What on earth had possessed his dreadful Aunt Louise to choose himself and Frasier to dispose of her ashes? Neither he nor Frasier had ever really liked her and the feeling was mutual. Perhaps that's why she chose them, to make certain that their last visit with her would be something they would never forget.

Oh, they'd never forget it, that's for sure. Damn urn. You'd think that the crematory would have chosen an urn that would have been easier to open. Instead when Niles has finally found the proper place to scatter her ashes, even in death, Aunt Louise had gotten the better of him.

The thought made him shudder as the reverend began speaking. "Dear Friends, thank you all for coming today. I know how very deeply your friendship was treasured by Louise and it's an honor to have with us today her favorite nephew, one of Seattle's most eloquent speakers, Dr. Frasier Crane."

Niles rolled his eyes in disgust. Of course Frasier was her favorite nephew. He was everyone's favorite. Even though Niles loathed Aunt Louise, he couldn't deny the small pang of jealousy and hurt inside. After all, if Frasier really was her favorite then why wasn't he asked to take care of her ashes? There was no doubt that it had to be a conspiracy.

"Dr. Crane has spent the last fortnight reflecting on what Louise meant to him." The reverend continued. "Dr. Crane?"  
Frasier looked absolutely terrified as he approached the podium. It was a sight that made Niles smile in the tiniest way.

"Well, well, well." Frasier began. "What can I say about… Aunt Louise? What can I say? Louise… touched us all. In fact she touches us still."

As Martin snickered, both Niles and Frasier brushed the remnants of Aunt Louise's ashes from their designer suits. Niles found himself wondering why he'd bothered to wear one of his best suits to the funeral of a woman he loathed. No doubt it was ruined and he'd be forced to buy a new one. On second thought, that might not be such a bad idea. He knew for a fact that he would never wear the suit again and he vowed to burn it and bring the ashes to Aunt Louise's final resting place. Surely that would make her complete again. Or as complete as one's body can be when they are but a pile of ashes.

"And now, as I say goodbye to Aunt Louise…" Frasier continued. "A phrase comes to mind. It was coined by my very own father. _She's such a groovy lady_."

In confusion, Niles, Martin and Daphne looked at one another and then at Frasier who nodded and smiled proudly. And then Frasier turned to the choir where the organist began playing a familiar catchy tune. Immediately the choir began to sing, belting out the song of the same name that Martin had so painfully worked on and then put away for many years; that is until Daphne found it and the family convinced him to put it to music. Imagine, their father writing a song for the legendary Frank Sinatra!

Alas, the song wasn't accepted and now Niles found himself wondering why. It was so catchy that he couldn't help clapping and moving in time to the music along with almost everyone in the congregation. It was by far the most fun he'd ever had in years.

When the song was over, Frasier was given a rousing standing ovation. Niles may have been jealous of his older brother's recognition, but Frasier had really outdone himself this time. Finally the congregation quieted and the reverend returned to the pulpit wearing a smile.

"And now, let us bow our heads for a moment of silence in memory and honor of Louise."

The idea of honoring such a woman made Niles laugh out loud, despite the stares he received. "He must be crazy if he thinks I'm going to waste one more minute on that retched woman!" Niles scoffed. When he received a sharp jab in the side from his father, he was horrified that he'd spoken aloud. Daringly he looked around to find that his father wasn't the only one who had heard him and Niles feared that he had ruined his father's good mood.

But the worry was quickly forgotten when he looked at his angel. She was so beautiful wearing a simple black dress, but it was the tears in her eyes that made his heart go out to her. Even though she had come to a funeral for a woman she hadn't even known, she still managed to be touched by the ceremony. And Niles suddenly felt very small.

Damn, how could he have been so intensive? He tried to reach for her hand, but it was impossible with his father in the way. But he tried just the same and his fingertips barely touched hers when she suddenly sprang from her seat.

At the pulpit, the reverend was still droning on and on about Louise. So much for a moment of silence. But he couldn't think about that now.

"Daphne, where are you going?" Martin whispered harshly. "Sit down!"

But she ignored him and moved silently past them, the hem of her dress brushing against Niles' pant leg. The sensation almost caused him to lose his senses.

"And you…. Pay attention to the reverend!" Martin ordered, glaring at Niles. "You might learn a thing or two!"

But Niles had no intention of learning anything from the reverend or from the 'ghost' of woman who hated him, even if his father thought otherwise. Instead he watched as Daphne walked to the back of the sanctuary and out into the breezeway.

When he was certain that his father was engrossed in Aunt Louise's best friend's retelling of a dull childhood story, Niles discreetly rose from his seat and hurried to find his angel. It wasn't hard to do, for he found her right away, sitting on a bench crying.

He went to her at once, offering her his handkerchief, praying that it was free of his deceased aunt's ashes.  
"Thank you, Dr. Crane." Daphne said, smiling through her tears.

Niles sighed. "Daphne I'm sorry for my insensitive comments during what should have been a solemn moment. It was… childish and uncalled for and-."  
Her hand touched his, causing him to shiver. "I understand."  
"You do?"  
She nodded. "I know she wasn't your favorite aunt and if you ask me she wasn't very nice. I'm glad I didn't know her."  
Niles was astounded. "So you're not upset by my insensitivity?"  
"Actually I thought you handled yourself very well. Of course you always do."  
"Thank you, Daphne."  
"You're welcome." She said. Just when he thought things were okay, she began to cry again.  
"Oh Daphne, please don't cry. Aunt Louise would be so touched that you care so much. And I can guarantee that she would have loved you. I mean how anyone could not…. Um…. Love you?"

To his complete surprise, she turned and kissed his cheek. "That's lovely, Dr. Crane. Thank you. But I have to admit that I'm not upset over your Aunt Louise. I'm sorry, but…"  
His cheek burned from where her lips had been and he wasn't entirely convinced that he wasn't floating. "You're welcome, Daphne. And I don't expect you to be sympathetic to a woman you never knew. She wasn't the… kindest woman in the world, although I did try very hard to make her happy. I guess I didn't try hard enough."  
"But you made your father happier than I've ever seen him." She said.  
"I… I did?"  
"Yes. Having the choir sing that beautiful song…. That's why I was crying. Silly, isn't it?"  
"Not at all, but… Frasier's the one who…"

She took his hands into hers and smiled. "The look on your father's face last night when the three of you were singing and happy… working on his song… I've never seen such love between a father and his sons before. I suppose I was a little jealous. I mean, I have me brothers and me parents but I know I'll never have the kind of relationship with me father that you and your brother have with yours."

"Daphne, your father loves you. I mean, I've never met the man, but the way you talk about him.."  
"Yes, but sometimes I wish I had a family like yours. I know your father can be stubborn and your brother can be completely impossible, but just for a little while… I'd like to experience that."  
Niles sighed deeply and squeezed her hands. So that was it.

"If I had known this was going to upset you, I never would have-."  
"You didn't. And don't blame this on your brother or your father, or even Aunt Louise. And don't let your brother take all the credit for that song! Your brother may have been the one who got the choir to sing it, but you played the piano so beautifully that-."  
"But Daphne-"  
Her fingertips went to his mouth to silence him and he longed to take her hand, to kiss her soft skin. But he didn't dare. Instead he swallowed hard and looked into her beautiful eyes.

"Hush…" she said softly. "Don't make this all about your brother. I'll never forget what you did for your father last night and I know that he'll remember it always. If you ask me, Frank Sinatra doesn't know what he's missing because I'm sure that your father's song would have been a huge hit!"

Her words were so welcome that a flood of emotion came over him and he hugged her tightly, allowing the scent of her hair to waft under his nose.

He continued to hold her but was soon overcome by a dreadful itching sensation. Unexpectedly he released his grip on her and scrambled to take off his coat, flapping it wildly while she watched in amusement.

"What on earth are you doing?"  
"Well, it seems that we had a slight mishap with the urn on the way to scatter her ashes. I have no doubt that Aunt Louise instructed the crematory to make the lid on her urn impossible to open and it took both Frasier and I to pry the lid off. Unfortunately, it didn't just come off. It flew off and we were showered with ashes. Frasier was right. She does touch us still."

Daphne bit her lower lip but was only able to contain her laughter for a few seconds. Soon the two of them were laughing hysterically and he was barely aware of the way she was brushing his suit with her hands.

Tears filled her eyes again but these were clearly tears of laughter and he felt them in his own eyes. "Oh, Dr. Crane, I love you so much." Daphne said, causing his heart to skip a beat. And then he rested his head against her neck, allowing himself to smell her hair. "I love you too, Daphne."

The blissful moment ended when they were joined by Frasier and Martin and they instantly drew back from one another.  
"Come on, let's get out of here!" Martin grumbled. "I need a beer! And I bet you boys want to get out of those suits!"

"I know I certainly do!" Frasier said, brushing off his suit. "The sooner I get rid of Aunt Louise the better!"

"Oh, that reminds me…" Daphne said glancing at Niles. "How did the scattering go?"  
Niles removed his shoes and poured a stream of ashes onto the carpeted floor, bringing a snicker of laughter from Martin.

"We had a little trouble with the urn." Frasier said carefully. "The lid was stuck and…"  
"Funniest damn thing I've ever seen!" Martin laughed. "It was raining Aunt Louise!"

"Dad-."  
But Martin ignored Frasier and laughed even harder. Niles couldn't help but notice that Daphne was no longer laughing and in fact had disappeared into the sanctuary. "Dad, I'll…. Be right back, okay?"

"Oh, okay, Son." Martin said, still laughing. "We'll… be right here, laughing hysterically."

Niles smiled at his father and walked into the sanctuary where he found Daphne kneeling in front of the prayer rail, staring at the huge cross that hung from the ceiling. He slowly walked down the aisle until he reached her and waited until her prayer was finished. She rose and turned around, gasping in surprise at the sight of him. "Oh… Dr. Crane... I'm sorry, I…"  
"It's all right, Daphne. Take all the time you need."  
"I was just saying a little prayer, although it was more like a wish. Isn't that silly?"  
"Not at all. Is this… about what we were discussing earlier?"  
She smiled and brushed a tear from her cheek. "I'm afraid it was. I'm sorry, Dr. Crane."  
"I'm the one who should be sorry, because I didn't really answer your question."  
"What question is that?"  
"Well, I suppose it wasn't' really a question but when you were talking about your family and how you wish they were more like ours… Daphne, you have always been a part of our family. Frasier tells me all the time how wonderful you are with Dad. I've seen it myself of course, but to hear it coming from Frasier, made me realize how true it is. "  
"Dr. Crane, that's so sweet."  
"Maybe, but it's the truth. You are family Daphne. And you always will be. Please don't ever forget that."

She sniffled and rose to her feet, moving toward him to kiss his cheek. "Thank you, so much."  
He couldn't resist hugging her once more, content to stay in her arms forever. But he knew that she must be uncomfortable in such a place. "Dad and Frasier are waiting for us."

As they walked out of the sanctuary, he paused and looked through the tiny glass window in the foyer. From here he could see the sanctuary, all folded into a neat glass box, as though it only needed a ribbon to make it complete.  
"Something wrong, Niles?" Frasier asked.

"There's something… I need to do. You three go on. I'll be right there."

Niles returned to the sanctuary where only a few mourners remained and as he sat in the front row pew, he was reminded of all the ridicule and disdain Aunt Louise had brought. Frasier and his dad would be absolutely livid if they knew that he was paying his last respects to a woman who cared so little for him. But then he thought about Daphne and of how his aunt had somehow brought them closer together.

And then he smiled. "Thanks, Aunt Louise. And for what it's worth, I'll miss you."  
He was still smiling as he walked out of the sanctuary and into the foyer where Daphne smiled and took his hand. It was definitely the best funeral he had ever attended.

THE END


End file.
